


The Bonfire

by Edgeanescence



Category: Jet Set Radio, Jet Set Radio Future
Genre: Gen, Mild Hurt/Comfort, postgame
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-06-17
Packaged: 2020-05-13 08:03:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19247131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Edgeanescence/pseuds/Edgeanescence
Summary: Yoyo's nowhere to be found at the latest GG get together. Beat wants to make sure he's okay.





	The Bonfire

The campfire cast a warm glow on the rudies hanging around it. Light washed over their faces and belongings as they gathered, sitting down in a sloppy circle. It was vastly different from the typical meetings they had in the Garage, but a welcome change. Beat especially liked it, the fire’s heat making him nice and cozy where he sat. He closed his eyes and relaxed a bit, leaning back against the old recycling bin they were using as a seat. The rest of the GG’s mumbling was muffled past his headphones, creating a nice background noise that wasn’t too bothersome. If it hadn’t been for Gum nudging him, Beat probably would’ve been lulled to sleep.

 

“Beat.”

 

His eyes gradually opened, squinting at the girl near him. “Yeah?” He mumbled.

 

“Do you know where Yoyo is? He was with us earlier but ever since the fire got started I couldn’t spot him.” She replied quizzically, blonde eyebrows quirked in interest.

 

His expression shifted into one of distress and the boy sat upright, Gum getting his full attention. Thoughts raced through his mind. Oh fuck. Did Yoyo somehow manage to get captured again? What if he was just worrying over nothing and Yoyo was stopping to get something he forgot at the Garage? 

 

“No,” he replied, shaking his head a little. “I’ll... I’ll go look for him real quick. Do ya think he headed back to the Garage?”

 

Gum thought about it for a moment, gritting her teeth and glancing away in the manner she always did when considering the options. From behind her, it seemed that none of the other gang members noticed Yoyo’s disappearance, conversing amongst themselves and making smores over the open flame. The blonde agreed after a few minutes. “Yes. It’s not like we were doing anything tonight that warranted the Rokkaku’s eyes on us.”

 

That explanation seemed logical enough. The GG’s had an agreement that tonight was going to be free of tagging after all, so the cops wouldn’t be coming after them. The only things that could give them away were the fire and noise; if Yoyo left the scene, he might as well not be part of the problem.  Beat got up from his place on the ground, pursing his lips and letting determination settle. “‘Aight. Thanks, Gum.” 

 

Gum flashed him a knowing smile, understanding that with him on the job, there would be a thorough search. As she spun around to rejoin the discussion, Beat skated off into the duskiness. 

 

\----

 

Kogane was a massive section of Tokyo-To, fortunately for Beat, he didn’t have to go looking very far for Yoyo. After around fifteen minutes of searching, Beat spotted him sitting near the edge of the platform, looking out into the waters below them. Relief flowed through him, Beat’s body relaxing at the sight. The thoughts of Yoyo having been captured again were now expunged from his mind, replaced by mere concern. Slowing his pace so he didn’t scare the life out of Yoyo, Beat glided over, stopping right at his side. 

 

“Noticed you were gone when we finally got the fire going. Is everything okay man?” A gloved hand gently cupped over the green haired boy’s shoulder. 

 

Yoyo turned his head upwards toward Beat. Despite both of them wearing some form of eye covering, they could still feel their eyes connecting. He bit his lip for a fraction of a second before looking back towards the lake. “Y-yeah, it’s nothing to worry about, yo.”

 

Beat frowned, reading past the other’s words with ease. When both had bonded over being good liars, it was hard to get away with this kind of stuff. However, Beat never took it personally, as Yoyo tended to be a bit of a pathological liar and what was a lie was not detrimental. It was always little stuff, the kind of thing you’d say no to on impulse, like being cornered by a parent after having snuck candy. “Yoyo..” Beat trailed off, a disappointed tone coating Yoyo’s name like icing on a cake. His hand slid off Yoyo’s shoulder as he plopped down beside him. 

 

This simple remark seemed to dig into Yoyo. He resumed biting his lip in nervous habit, continuing his stare into the distance. Fingers curled into the stone and dirt as if they were some way to release tension. If there were a few people who could get him to spit out the truth, Beat was one of them. Beat knew damn well that it wouldn’t be easy though if such a question had to do with Yoyo’s strange mood.

 

“What’s gotcha all upset? Did someone piss ya off earlier?” It was a direct prod into that uncertainty Yoyo began displaying; a prod using the hooked end of a crowbar to pull out the truth. 

 

The other boy trained his gaze to his shorts, letting out a quiet little sigh before mumbling, “No, and I told you I’m fine.” Yoyo stressed the final word in a weak attempt to get Beat to stop, though it held no real bite.

 

Behind his goggles, Beat’s eyes narrowed and he tilted his head to get a better look at Yoyo’s face. “You aren’t fine Yoyo, if you were doin’ okay ya wouldn’t’ve left us.”

 

The serious tone is what did Yoyo in, he pulled his hood up to cover his face the best he could. A quiet whine escaped him as he formulated what to say. For a few minutes, it was just nothing but the pitiful noise which progressively faded into silence. “Mm... I..” His body curled in on itself as if he was ashamed of the truth. “Fire’s freaky, yo.”

 

Beat was.. Amused, to say the least. Of all the things he expected Yoyo to say, ‘fire’s freaky’ was not one of them. He fought his face to keep from snickering at it, though a smirk managed to sneak onto his features. “‘Fire’s freaky?’ It’s not like the bonfire’s out to getcha Yoyo. C’mon, let’s get back there.”

 

Yoyo turned his head Beat’s way. The edges of his lips were curved into a frown, his eyebrows angled the same direction. The look alone wrought guilt into Beat’s heart; perhaps he shouldn’t have said it like that. “No, Beat, you don’t get it! I just.. I don’t like being around it, yo. I feel uneasy and nervous about it because it’s always in my nightmares.” His voice cracked a little as he went on. “It’s one of the few things I remember from when I was real young. The heat... The screams… It’s just burned into the back of my mind yo, and I don’t even know that much about the fire. All I know is that the bigger it is, the more I wanna cry and run away.” Yoyo sniffled, rubbing at his face with his inner elbow. 

 

The older boy was mute. He had no words to say, nothing snappy to roll off the tongue to lighten the mood. The older boy just swallowed thickly, keeping his brown eyes trained on Yoyo. From underneath the other’s shades, he took note of the tears gently rolling down his cheeks. If the shades hadn’t been there, Beat reckoned that Yoyo’s eyes would’ve been filled with the deep hurt he mentioned. A heavy emotion settled within Beat’s stomach, something he typically didn’t show around the other GG’s. Empathy. His arms suddenly embraced Yoyo in a tight hug, Beat’s head leaning on Yoyo’s. He could feel Yoyo’s body jerk every now and then, quiet sobs slipping past his lips. Yoyo returned the embrace as he let out his feelings, burying his face into Beat’s shoulder. Something fell onto the ground with a quiet clatter, probably the younger boy’s shades, but neither cared to pick them up. Instead, the pair sat there entangled with each other, letting the dense fog of silence wash over them.

 

Eventually, Yoyo calmed down enough to break it. “I thought that maybe I could get over myself for once, yo. Have fun with you guys and get over a fear, but I guess I won’t have either of those tonight...” His voice choked a little as he spoke, a side effect of his sadness. Yoyo’s grip loosened, arms falling to his sides.

 

Beat took the hint and pulled his arms away, allowing them both to have some breathing room. “...You at least have me. I’m not gonna leave ya alone like this for some dumb bonfire anyway.”

 

Yoyo grabbed his sunglasses but didn’t put them on. Instead, he just looked at Beat with his naked eyes; a mismatched gaze settling onto the older boy. Beat had to admit, Yoyo’s eyes were awfully pretty, especially in this light. The darkest of dusk might’ve surrounded them, the small amount of light reflected off his eyes in a manner that brought out his jade green and sky blue irises. His eyes were full of adoration, twinkling with a light that contrasted with the tear tracks on his cheeks. A grin crept up onto his lips, progressively expanding until it was his iconic smile. 

 

“Thanks, Beat. You really are da man after all.” Yoyo laughed, hesitating a brief moment before sliding his red-rimmed shades back onto his face. 

 

Beat snorted and nudged him playfully, “Nah, you are; ya say it enough for it to be fact.”

 

“Oh shut up, yo…”


End file.
